they have been considering senator john kerry, who has long wanted to be secretary of state, for defense secretary. the white house has also lock wanted u.n. ambassador susan rice to success hillary clinton, but officials say congressional leaders are now warning them that the controversy over benghazi could complicate her confirmation, and counterterrorism adviser john brennan is still a possibility, if he wants it, to take over at cia. a lot going on here. savannah. >> complicated is the word of the day. amitch nell washington. thank you. let's turn to retired colonel jack jacobs who is an nbc military analyst. first petraeus, and now general allen involved. on the stunner scale, where do you put this? >> seven. very startling, especially for those people who worked with these officers and known for them for years and years. really quite astonishing. do you know general allen? what is his reputation? >> i don't know him very well. i've met him on several occasions. he's a 1976 honors graduate of the u.s. naval academy. he's got a -- a masters degree from georgetown, from the national w